Yegna cross-cultural resonance study

Our Ethiopian youth brand, Yegna, has been working to spark change for girls in the Addis and Amhara regions since 2013.

Like all our brands, it is deeply grounded in the cultures and contexts of these particular regions, and centred on the girls who live there and whose lives we want to impact.

We have been exploring how Yegna could broaden to a national audience, broadening its reach across all of Ethiopia while always making sure it is anchored in the culture and experience of every girl and those around her.

We commissioned a substantial piece of qualitative research to really understand the language and cultural differences across the country, to identify the heart of any commonalities in youth culture and young people's needs, and to investigate how well the current Yegna brand and products could be adapted or broadened to resonate with this wider audience.

This research has been invaluable in informing our plans. Through it we have a much more granular understanding of the differences across regions, as well as the common pressures that young people across Ethiopia face in navigating modern life. Yegna's perceived core values - authentic, relevant and unique - resonate strongly and would provide a strong foundation for a national product.

This research has been instrumental in our decision to launch a national Yegna TV show in Ethiopia in the next year.